HPXKH - Hearts of the Selfless
by Krytus
Summary: Fenrir was given the pet life after being stuck in a shelter for his entire life. This includes food, shelter, and most importantly an owner that loves him. What happens when he has to give it all up? P.S. This is also on my deviantart account jau418 Also I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Housepets Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix Housepets belongs to Rick Griffin
1. Family

Chapter 1  
Family

 _'Yes I'd like to adopt a dog, please.'_ When I first heard those words my tail would spring to life and wag back and forth.  
 _  
'Everything seems to check out, right this way Ms.'_ However now after the countless attempts I made in the past I just don't see the point of it.

I had just recently been transferred to this shelter, and I barely knew any of the dogs here, but I already knew staying in here could last forever if I didn't get out. Since I wasn't adopted yet I had no official name, I was given one, but I could feel that it was out of pity and not out of love.

A vast majority of my life so far has been devoted to staring at the ceiling just waiting for my chance to get out of this prison, but no one would give me that chance. Humans came and went, majority of the time carrying a dog in their arms or with their hands connected, and yet I stayed.

Once there was a keeper that stayed later than most. He was in charge of taking care of the pets to be adopted, which included me. He and I hit it off when all the other dogs just would not shut up save for me. We talked and vented our frustrations and eventually we got close, he even taught me how to read, which lead to my obsession with books, a weird habit for a dog living in the shelter. Nonetheless it was what fueled our conversations and kept me sane inside the cage I lived in. I would ask him to lend me some of his books to read and he would comply.

When my old shelter ran out of room the owners decided to transfer me somewhere I might have more luck in adoption. The night before the transfer I asked if he was interested in adopting me, but he told me he just couldn't afford to take care of me. He explained his deepest regrets and I had no choice but to accept them. We said our goodbyes and soon I was on my way to a new cage.

Thus began my journey from shelter to shelter to another shelter. At first I found it exciting getting a chance to see new faces, and possibly find a family who would accept me but now being transferred was basically another way of saying **we don't want you here.**

I have been transferred again and this time I just didn't see the point of doing any of it anymore. I'm talking about the way pets put on masks just to score points with possible owners. I used to put on a cute face just for those humans like what the other dogs were doing but I just didn't feel like it this time. Humans preferred younger pups opposed to the older ones so I used to think I had a chance but now I'm not so sure anymore.

This was not the first human to come into the kennels, there were others before, but I lost out to some pups a few months younger than me and on one occasion an old bloodhound. How I lost that one was beyond me but I could never really understand humans anyway.

The human walked in and all the other dogs got into their best position save for me and a few that had given up hope for adoption. She took her time individually between all of us trying to evaluate if we were house material. She was tall, and wore a yellow sweater vest, underneath her flowing black coat, and from what I could see she looked to be in her late thirties. Whatever, she was just another face that wasn't going to care about me and I couldn't care less either and got back into the comfy spot of my dull empty cage.

After passing through every dog before me she finally found her way to my cage and despite my reluctance to get myself adopted I still stood to greet her. Of course this was mostly out of my curiousness on what she wanted to do or say to me.

"How old are you little guy?" she asked when the cage door was open

I looked at her and answered "I-I'm two years old."

"Is there something wrong? You look down." she asked as she knelt down to my eye level

"Oh it's nothing." I yawned and stretched "It just gets pretty boring around here."

"Nice fangs lone wolf." she pointed out with a giggle after leaning in closer

I felt my ears press down against the back of my head as I recalled every attempt at adoption. I cursed my unknown parents, these teeth were practically the reason why I lost out to those pups in the first place, after all no one would want a pet that looked practically like a feral.

I was already familiar to this scenario, so much so that it began to scare me that it was already seared into my memory. They look me in the eye and ask how old I was, and every time whoever interviewed me for adoption never failed to see my fangs. Since I was found abandoned it was never really clear if my teeth were running through my unknown family or just a genetic mishap. It was clear that I bore resemblance to a German Shepard, but they didn't know if I had any other genes running inside me.

One thing's for sure once my interviewer sees my fangs any interest they had in adopting me flew straight out the window.

Contrary to my expectations she stood up and faced the lady at the counter and said "I'd like to adopt this one. Is that alright? He seems like he could be able to keep me company."

"What did you say?" I couldn't believe my ears, did she just say she wanted to take me home?

"You're coming home with me little guy." she ruffled the fur on my head "Welcome to my family, you're a Rodriguez now."

Once the lady handed him my records she began to read them aloud as she signed the adoption papers "Owner: Lei Rodriguez. Signature check. New name?" she took a moment to look me in the eyes "Hmm, you look like a Fenrir to me, but I'll just nickname you Fen."

Fen, I said to myself, that was my new name that accompanied the new owner I would be spending time with. I never thought the day would come, I belonged somewhere now, I had a family. Emotions welled up inside me as I felt tears coming down my face soaking my fur as it dripped down.

"Now for my favorite part. I actually spent all night practicing this." she raised her right hand, closed her eyes, cleared her throat and took a deep breath. I began to wonder what she was doing but I didn't have to wonder for long.

"I, Lei Rodriguez, hereby swear to take good care of my pet Fenrir Rodriguez. To feed him, to play with him and take care of his needs." A pledge for me?

Why did I suddenly care? I had accepted my fate in the shelter already but I felt relieved that I didn't have to spend the rest of my days in a cage.

"What's wrong Fen?" She knelt down to get on eye level with me once more

She said my name again and I could do nothing other than cry. I don't know if I was happy that I was going to be adopted or if I was frustrated. After all this time I finally get an owner by not even trying. Emotions I thought I had under control were welling up and I didn't know what to say. I was confused; what did she ever want with me? What was different this time?

"Hey" she whispered, causing me to look her in the eyes "Can I tell you something?" I wiped my eyes and nodded "I adopted you, because you Fenrir Rodriguez, out of all those dogs in there, knew how I felt the most. While other dogs in there are just as lonely I can see that you are experiencing deeper sense of solitude. I thought that no one else could understand exactly how soul crushing it felt to be alone, how it hurt deep inside, and how it makes getting up each day harder and harder. So imagine my surprise when I see a dog sharing that same look I see in the mirror every single day. Misery loves company am I right?"

A fresh batch of tears fell from my eyes. Every word she said, had just hit the nail exactly on the head. For the longest time I have been alone, locked away in a cage, but for the first time in my life, I found someone who truly understood how I felt. I couldn't help myself but throw my arms around her and continue to unload my tears onto her shoulders.

"There, there Fen." she patted me on the head "Let's go home."

She broke our hug and headed for the door. I took a moment but I was ready, so I rushed a head of her and stood eagerly in front of the door. As I was about to reach for the handle I paused just to turn around and look my owner in the eyes again. I was going to leave this shelter once more, however this time I won't be coming back. Instead I was going to go home.

End of Chapter 1


	2. Chapter 2 Living Life

Chapter 2  
Living Life

A year had already passed from the fateful day I had come to know as my adoption, and my life was finally getting its much deserved compensation. Gone are the days of starring at the ceiling wondering when it would be my turn to leave the shelter. I was no longer bound to a world composed of three walls and a cage door, and at first it felt strange holding this much freedom in my hands, but I've never felt more at peace than ever in my life. Now I live in a small house in a quiet suburban area, which was a definite improvement since my shelter days.

On most days Mom would be working her job as a chef from dawn till dusk, which meant I had the entire house to myself. Though she always took Sundays off to play and spend time with me whether it be reading books inside together or just playing with a Frisbee in the park, we always managed to squeeze in time between her work and rest periods just for the two of us.

I could come and go as I pleased, so long as I locked the door when I left. Neighboring pets acquainted themselves with me, some strange, and some completely normal. It didn't happen over night, but every day my world expanded from a small cage, to a small house, then to a neighborhood block. If I hadn't met Mom last year I would probably still be locked away in that cage waiting for an adoption that would never come.

My life isn't the only one to improve since I got adopted. Mom actually got a boyfriend, only because I nudged her to talk to him. She said he was very passionate about his work as a chef as well, dedicating late shifts to the restaurant to improve its recipes, and even going so far as to revive some recipes with his own flair. He was even called the feisty chef Alfonzo, someone seriously needs to lay off the anime.

He sounded like an amazing guy, from the way mom talked about him, so I suggested for her to bring him over since it had been some time since they started dating. Although when we got to meet in person for the first time he and I didn't exactly mesh together. Alfonzo wasn't a dog person at all, and when he saw my fangs he completely lost it. He tried to attack me while I was holding the door open for both of them, Yelling "Feral! Someone call animal control!" at the top of his lungs.

It took a while, and a few reassuring words from mom but he finally managed to calm down and stop calling me a feral beast. While it was one meeting only I could already tell I didn't like him. I know first impressions aren't everything but when someone calls you a beast just from your looks its gets difficult to resist the urge to smack him in the head with a frying pan.

However in that moment I did see how he really felt for my mom and how much he made her happy, so I decided to set things straight with him. I tried to make a truce for my mom that we should get along just for mom since we both love her. To my surprise Alfonzo reluctantly agreed, and after an awkward hand shake we were officially neutral. Up till now he and I still aren't very compatible but we could tolerate each others existence so baby steps I guess.

After six months of dating my mom was finally proposed to, and I couldn't be happier for her since she said yes. The only problem I had was dealing with Alfonzo for the rest of my natural life, but if it made mom happy I was willing to accept the change.

"Fen we're home!" That was mom, and ugh soon to be dad

I ran to the door, unlocked it and showed both mom, and Alfonzo inside, mom wore her usual attire while Alfonzo was wearing a button down shirt accompanied by his jeans that showed of his chiseled features "So how was work?"

"Eh, same old, same old." she said as she took off her cloak "Cook this, cook that the usual."

After her explanation I took a moment to marvel at mom's coat one more time. I may be a dog, and clothing may be foreign to us, but I always wanted to wear that coat. Its little red ridding hood style hood would make me look like a cool assassin, wondering through the night searching for his next target. Combine that with its long sleeves, midnight black and flowing fabric, then you get the ultimate cloak of pure and unadulterated awesomeness, which would perfectly contrast with my white fur. Mom always wore it to work, no matter the season and I've always been jealous of her whenever she wears it.

"So how about you Fen how was your day?" Mom ruffled the fur on my head playfully

I smugly recalled the days earlier events "Well I don't mean to brag but after weeks of training and practice I finally nailed that triple back flip move I've been working on in the park. You should've seen the faces of the dogs at the park all the guys were totally jealous while I may have wooed some of the ladies."

"That's my dog." Mom said on her way to the kitchen "Let's see what do we have left over?"

I remembered that our food supply was beginning to run low so I compiled a list of groceries "I made a grocery list of things we need to restock on, it's on the fridge. Also I think the heater in your room is busted. I tried to fix it but the manual didn't help at all."

"Alright thanks, but for now I'll see what I can do."

"Alfonzo." I said monotonously

He looked at me then replied in the same monotony "Nice to see you too Fenrir."

At that moment a cloud of awkwardness managed to condense around me and him. I was desperate for an excuse to be in a different room, or go somewhere else but I had no clue as to what it would be. Mom must have noticed the tension in the air and called out to Alfonzo.

"Honey why don't you come and help me prepare dinner while Fen go on and set the table."

I silently thanked what ever powers there may be and went to work right away. Something told me Alfonzo was doing the same thing, as he was almost as fast as I was getting up and away from the cloud of awkwardness.

Before we knew it all the tasks and chores were finished and dinner was ready to be eaten. Tonight mom managed to serve a helping of French fries, with a chicken drumstick to go with it. I was served the least because I also had dog kibble to go with mine so I guess it's fair.

While I ate Mom and Alfonzo got closer together and opened a brochure "So honey while I was on break I was looking at the cakes they had for sale for weddings, and I got an idea for the cake we could make."

"Al, it's our wedding." She said with a laugh "Take it easy and let someone else do the work for us."

"Lei you know," Alfonzo's sentence abruptly came to a halt, and I wondered why he did so, but he found his words again "we're chefs we can't go around asking other chefs to do our work for us."

"Hon, they're bakers, and come on what's the problem with asking someone else to do it?" It looked like Alfonzo was going to answer but mom turned to me hurriedly "Fen's right here, so why don't we plan our wedding later. It'd be rude to exclude him from our conversation."

I smiled, that was my mom for you, instead of playing favorites she balanced her attention between me and Alfonzo. There are times dedicated to each of us and a time dedicated for all three of us. Unfortunately mom even set times where Alfonzo and I would spend time together without her. That said time slot was next as I recalled mom's overly complicated schedule sprawled on the cork board hanging just behind me.

Dinner was over and Alfonzo and I had dish duty, while mom checked the heater in her room. Since I had fur on my hands Alfonzo did the actual washing while I was the one to put it into the dish rack, with the use of a towel of course.

We mostly worked in silence, but neither one of us was going to take the first step to reach each other. This was how it was like for most of our shared slots, granted this shared time between me and Alfonzo had only been implemented a few weeks back.

I had enough of our shared silence, and since he wasn't going to be the one to take the first step I guess it would have to be me "So Al-" No, if I was going to do this I was going to do this right "dad, been on any good dates with mom lately?"

"Well I," he seemed shocked and at a loss for words "We're just so busy with work, that we don't have that much time to ourselves lately."

"That's weird, I mean you do work in a restaurant right? When it's after hours just light a few candles cook some food, and there you have it, instant romantic date. You could ask the owner and I'm sure he wouldn't mind if his top chefs had some alone time together."

"You know that's not a bad idea thanks for that Fenri~ I mean Fen."

"Hey, its part of our truce remember? We get along, only because we do it so mom can be happy."

"That's right for Lei."

"For mom."

We shared a laugh and I think a miracle had just occurred. Alfonzo and I getting along, along without mom anywhere nearby. Pinch me I must be dreaming, all it took was just to take a single step forward.

"These should be the last batch of dishes." he said handing me a stack of plates and pots "Your mother and I need to have a talk."

I gladly accepted the stack of dishes, and let Alfonzo have some time with mom. Again our relationship as in-laws isn't the best, but what happened earlier was a big step in the right direction. I even felt that maybe just maybe Al- I mean dad, and I can get along.

As I stacked the last of the dishes in the dish rack, I noticed how rickety and unstable it was. The supports wobbled when I barely even touched it and threatened to collapse if I so much as breathed on it. Now that I thought about it, a lot of the things in this house was really worn down. The heater was just one of the things that broke down this week and mom probably just had no time to bring those things to the shop, but still. When something breaks around here it takes like three weeks to get it fixed even more if it really isn't all that important.

I relieved my hands of the towel and turned to the living room ready to join mom with whatever she might be doing. However a slight barely noticeable creak recalled my attention to the dish rack.

Before I could react properly as I had feared, the dish rack collapsed in on itself sending a cascade of plates on my head. Disoriented I tried to step towards the table but forgot about the glass shards on the floor. Not only did they sink into my vulnerable feet, but I also slipped on them and fell towards the floor. Thankfully I reached my hand out to stop my body from hitting the floor, but the glass also sank deep into my hands as well.

Before I knew it mom was at my side, she must have heard the plates breaking and my pained howl. I tried to keep my hand clenched, but I felt it sting unbearably as I unwillingly let out a second yelp. Judging from the intensity of the pain, I would say that it's in pretty deep.

"Fen, listen to me," mom placed her hands on my shoulders "It's going to be fine. Alfonzo start the car I'll be there shortly." she picked me up, ignoring the red I was decorating her with as she ran out the door "Al is the car ready?"

"Yes, now hurry, we have to get to the vet." he replied from the driver's seat

Mom locked the front door and took a seat next to me. Everything that happened next was a bit of a blur. I saw my assigned vet, he gave me a pill, and everything went blank.

My thoughts we unclear, and my vision murky, but I was somewhat conscious again. While my mind was not completely here I still caught glimpses of what happened around me. Mom was here, and so was dad. They're talking to the vet while I rest on the provided bed. I may not be able to see all too well, but I could still make out what they were saying.

Right now mom and dad were wearing worry ridden faces as the Vet read my charts "I was able to pull out all the shards and stitched all the wounds closed. Give it three weeks and Fen will only have a scar on his feet and right hand to remember this ordeal with. He will be able to walk tomorrow, but I would advise against letting him stand for too long. His feet will take a week to be back to their full capacity, but his right hand will take a month. He maybe groggy when he wakes up but I assure you it's just the anesthesia is just doing its job he's perfectly fine."

"Oh thank goodness; thank you sir." mom took the vet's hand and shook it "Is it alright if we stay here till he wakes up?"

"That is fine, just don't wake him up. After loosing that much blood Fen needs to rest and recuperate." said the vet as he left the room leaving mom and dad to themselves

"At least Fen's alright, that's the most important thing right now." mom said with a sigh

Dad's face looks so sad why does he look like that? "Lei, you know you can't keep doing this right?"

"I have to try Al, its not like I have much of a choice."

"But Lei it's already been two weeks." Two weeks since what? "Two weeks without a job isn't doing much good for your financial status, and I can't support the two of you forever."

"Al, I couldn't help it. The restaurant has been going through tough times, and I was just expendable. Remember Fen cannot find out about any of this."

"Look I know you promised him that you'd be the one to take care of him, but look at what's happening to him. Both of you are slowly running out of food, and earlier that old dish rack that I keep telling you to replace collapsed on him. You're inadvertently hurting Fen, because you can't let him go."

"Al I can't just send him away. I made a promise, and I'm not about to break it by sending him back to the shelter. Not after what I said to him when I adopted him."

"Lei that pledge is not legally binding, the only reason why you can't break it is because you think it's important."

"Not that. When I adopted Fen I told him that he and I were alike in the way we've already felt what it was like to be isolated. He can't go back to that void of loneliness I won't allow it. It will destroy him."

"Alright if sending Fen back to the shelter isn't going to be an option, how about your cousin, you told me you two used to be close."

"Yeah, but she's not even alive anymore, and if you say try her husband it won't work either. He's terrible with pets not to mention a horrible parent. I would've asked her son, but he was recently jailed for dog-napping so there is no way I'm letting him anywhere near Fen."

"Look all I'm saying is why prolong Fen's pain. Put up adoption posters or something; the point is if Fen stays with you you're only going to end up not being able to take care of him anymore. Plus he's another mouth to feed, and that's going to cost you some money to buy his food. You barely even managed to pay for his medical bill, if you can't support him you need to let Fen go."

There's no way mom would agree to what dad said, her promise she wouldn't break it ever. Right? She loves me, and I love her she would never give me away.

"You have a point." She said in between sobs "I dunno, maybe I just need time to think this through."

I couldn't believe it she considered what dad had to say? She promised that she would be the one to take care of me. She said that I understood what it meant to be in her place. Was I not good enough anymore to keep her company anymore; was I just another mouth to feed? Just a nuisance?

No matter how hard I tried I couldn't piece together the information I had. Mom lost her job for two weeks, and I hadn't noticed, and we've been struggling to get by all this time. It made me wonder what else I was missing, what else was kept away from me. Unfortunately I was exhausted beyond my limits, and my body began to shut down without my say so.

End of Chapter 2


	3. Chapter 3 Where Roads Cross

Chapter 3  
Where Roads Cross

Morning came and I was greeted with the sight of my mom sitting by my bed with dad sitting next to her. I had heard everything straight from them last night, but I still couldn't believe what they said. Mom lost her job? We we're only getting by because dad supported us?

"Fen you're awake." mom's voice greeted me with her normal kindness and soft tone

I winced when I remembered how much pain she hid behind that smile "Morning mom, where am I?" I asked to play off not hearing everything last night.

Mom took the time to explain everything to me, but left out the details of our financial condition. I could tell that she had very little sleep last night, the bags under her eyes said it all. That sight coupled with what I heard last night only made me feel more sorry for her and less angry at her from keep this a secret from me.

"Fen I'm sorry that you had to go through all that." she put her hand on mine, and when I winced she immediately pulled away

"Nah its fine mom." I tried to be as comforting as possible "Really I'm fine, besides I've always wanted a cool scar somewhere on my body. Now I'll really impress the ladies." With that joke I was able to get a laugh out of her, and I was relieved a little bit.

"Well then I'll be expecting a cute girl to be hanging by your arms by the time dinner roles around." At least my mom still could laugh, I took comfort in that.

Later the doctor came to give me my final check up, and gave mom some papers to sign. It still hurt to stand and walk but it was not as painful as when I first woke up. The doctor said that as much as possible I was to stay off walking or anything too strenuous.

When we got home mom gave me the couch and a pillow "I'm sorry we can't stay any longer but Al and I have to go to work. Remember if you need anything call me and I'll be there." she kissed my forehead then walked out the door

Once I was sure that mom and dad was gone I carefully and slowly got up. The pain was minimal I felt it, but I wasn't about to let that stop me from getting the answers I needed. Somewhere in mom's room was a drawer where she kept anything important. If I was going to find anything its going to be in there.

I got into her room with very little effort, since the only door mom and I ever locked was the front. Mom tended to be the organized type, so she kept everything where she knew she could find it. Its because of mom's habits that I was able to find her drawer so easily.

As I reached out to open the drawer I hesitated. Was I really sure I wanted to find all of this out? I could live the life of ignorance, just blissfully unaware of how my world was going to slowly crumble into dust. Echoes of mom and dad's conversation last night resounded in my head

"Its been two weeks."

"Al I made a promise."

"You're hurting Fen because you can't let him go."

I cleared my head and steeled my resolve. This was important and I needed to find out for myself if what they said was true. Grasping the handle tightly with my good hand I counted to three and pulled the drawer wide open.

Inside were all letters, and bank statements. One pile was dedicated to saying that mom's employers were sorry but they couldn't accept her in a chef position. Another was dedicated to telling mom that she had some money due. I couldn't believe my eyes, mom was keeping all this from me?

I slowly closed the drawer and fell to my knees crushed by disbelief. Mom was going through all this and yet she still wanted to keep her promise to me even if it meant more work for her to deal with. Why? No, none of this could be true, none of this was real. I refused to believe any of the evidence laid out in front of me. This was all an elaborate trick designed to get me to freak out.

Out of nowhere the land line in the hall, next to the kitchen rang aloud causing me to flinch. I quickly reorganized the letters and statements into their proper places to cover up any evidence that I was even here. With my tracks erased I made my way to the land line and picked it up

"H-Hello?" I asked nervously

The voice that answered back was strict and rough "Yes, is Ms Rodriguez currently at home? She's not answering her cellphone." What did this guy want with mom?

"Uh no she's not here, but I'll be happy to take a message." I answered masking my frustration

"Unfortunately we cannot accept her into our restaurant, as we are now sufficiently supplied with chefs. Please tell her I send my deepest regrets and wish her luck in the future. Good day."

"Wait-

I felt an all too familiar weight pressed onto my back as I slowly sank to my knees. My mom was struggling to provide for me and herself, and all I ever did was just stay home and benefit from being her pet. She fed me when she could have used that money to feed herself, she spent time with me when she could have used it to look for a new job. I didn't deserve anything she gave me, I didn't deserve the kindness she was showing me.

I wish I could do something to help, I wish I wasn't such a burden to her, but there wasn't anything that I could do. Pets were hired to do minor jobs like distribute the news paper, mow the lawn, and other easy to do jobs. The problem was that no one would trust me when they see me because of these accursed fangs. It took two months for owners to even allow their pets anywhere near me and even then I still set them on unease.

Dad's words to mom replayed itself in my head against my will.

"He's another mouth to feed."

"If you can't support him you need to let Fen go."

Those words, no matter how much I wanted to deny them, I have to admit that they held some weight. He was right I was just a burden, another mouth to feed, and mom didn't need something like me dragging her down.

I know what must be done now. Mom would never do it, and I love her for that, but I need to be the one who does the right thing. There was no way I was going to go back to that miserable life in the shelter, but there was another way. I could live the life of a stray, it wouldn't be glorious, it would leave me starved, but I just can't go back to that life of walls and cages.

That night mom came home tired but smiling, without a trace of dad anywhere nearby. I looked at her and put on a smile

"Mom is there anything wrong?" "I lied, I knew exactly what was wrong

"Oh Fen, its nothing." she ruffled my head and made her way towards the kitchen "I just got home from a long day of work, and right now I need some food for myself."

"Alright what's for dinner?" I walked by her side as she made her way to the kitchen

"I already ordered pizza, should be on its way here."

"By the way mom where's dad?"

"He said he was going to sleep in his apartment tonight."

"Okay so it'll be like old times. Just you and me."

"Yeah like old times."

Once the pizza arrived, we set it on the dinner table and got our fair share of slices. I tried not to think about how much this cost her this time, so I concentrated on my food. Our silence reminded me of our first night together in this house. I was uneasy being out for the first time, afraid I'd wake up and find it was a dream. To get me to calm down mom had to put my head on her lap and sang a lullaby.

I could tell that she was lost in thought, she didn't even notice I was here as she chowed on her pizza slices. Since I was about to leave I just wanted to hear that song one more time. I savored what would probably be my only decent meal in a long while but finished it before she did. Slowly I made my way to mom's side, and rested my head on her lap.

She flinched when she noticed me, but I pretended not to care "Hey mom remember that lullaby you sang to me on my first night here?"

"Y-Yes, why?" she said holding back her tears

"Could you sing it to me?" I yawned "I just really miss that song."

"Of course Fen, anything for you."

She and I closed our eyes at the same time as mom began her lullaby. The song started out powerful, but slow as the words smoothly flowed out like a gentle breeze. I could hear her sincerity with each word put together in solemn harmony, but I still felt the happiness flowing from her words. Mom's love was put into the very song, and I could hear the lyrics direct themselves towards me.

Time itself was functioning in reverse as I saw the time we spent together flash by scene by scene. Christmas was when she gave me a skateboard and my first time time to get a cast since I broke my arm trying to learn how to use the darn thing. Thanksgiving, that day I tried to cook for the first time, mom couldn't hold it in and puked, she and I still laughed anyway. Halloween was the time when mom and I played with my name as I glued more fur on my body and pretended to be Fenrir himself while she was a huntsman, we got so many stares that night but I couldn't care we had so much fun and candy. April Fool's day was when me and mom waged pie war on the entire pet population of our village it was a pain to clean up but totally worth it. Valentines day was the day I watched mom kiss dad underneath the fireworks, I saw how she smiled when they broke the kiss, I swore to myself that I'd never forget it ever.

Her words and song erased my doubt and steeled my resolve. I was reminded my reasons for why I was going to run away. Mom would be sad and hurt, but it needed to be done. I wasn't going to be the reason why she was suffering so much, and if it meant that she would have an easier life I would do it for her. She deserves so much more than me.

Mom's song ended and she stroked my head fur once more. She must have thought I fell asleep since she carried me to my room and tucked me in. Mom gave me one more kiss on the forehead before she went to her room.

After the door closed shut I slowly rose up and undid the blue collar mom had given me a long time ago. I took a few moments to look at it before I put it down and took a piece of paper and began a letter.

I told mom not to worry, I was not kidnapped and that I went off to be alone. Every word I wrote hurt whenever I think about how much this would hurt mom when she read it. Again I told myself it needed to be done, and carried on despite the pain. When I finished I sealed it, wrapped it around my collar and made my way to mom's room.

There on the bed lies mom's sleeping form, I climbed up to her bed and whispered into her ear as gently as I could "Mom, I'm sorry, but I love you, and I hope you don't forget about me."

After I placed my collar on her night stand I made my way out her room and out the front door. Once I stepped outside I noticed the chilling night air and how it rendered my fur insufficient as a source of warmth. I gripped my sides and made my way, it was going to be a long journey, and I had no idea as to where I would be going next, but I needed to start.

"FEN!" I was shocked, but I didn't need to turn around to see mom behind me with tears in her eyes

End of Chapter 3


	4. Chapter 4 When You Walk Away

Chapter 4  
When you walk away

"Fen, where are you going?" mom asked with a tremble in her voice

I refused to turn around only because I didn't want to make this harder on both of us "I just want to go for a walk, I'll be back later alright?"

"No its not alright! What's this!?" she unfurled the paper, and read select few lines "I won't be a burden to you, I know what's happened, you don't need to worry about me anymore." She crumpled the paper again and threw it at the ground "Fen there's nothing to be worried about. I don't know where you heard about my problems but they aren't true."

"We both know that's just a lie mom. I heard you in the vet, you wouldn't joke about that with dad. Not after what happened that night."

"Fen you were under anesthetics you probably dreamed the whole thing up."

"I saw letters in your room, you applied for a job in loads of other places, and got rejected. You also have some debts you need to pay off."

There was no denying it now, I already knew the truth. Mom knew this too but she couldn't keep herself standing with the weight of her sadness on her shoulders. I knew I promised myself I wouldn't turn around but the sound of her crying tore at my heart commanding me to turn around. I turned to face her once more only to be confronted with a sight that no child, pet or human otherwise should ever see in their life time. There's just something about seeing your mother on her knees crying that just causes you to break down along with her.

My world, as well as hers, is crumbling from a humble house, to a cold dark front lawn. I needed her to know that this was for her, it wouldn't be right if I left mom crying on her knees in the middle of the night.

"Mom," I sat down beside her and wrapped her in my arms "I need you to know; I love you, and I'm not leaving because I don't love you or I feel betrayed. I'm leaving because your life would be better if I wasn't in it. You have dad now, he'll take care of you. You deserve happiness and I'd only get in the way of that. If I stayed with you we'd both be miserable, but if I leave at least you'd have a chance at a better life."

Mom took a second to recover before she spoke again, her voice riddled with sadness "Fen, I'm so sorry. I promised to be the one to care for you, and I failed. I'm sorry."

"Mom its okay. I'm doing this for you."

"At least wait till you get adopted by someone else. You can't survive alone as a stray."

"There isn't anyone in your family who would take care of me. I will never go back to the shelter, and you can't wait till I get adopted. It took me an entire two years before I was adopted and you can't wait that long."

"Fen are you sure? There has to be some way we can fix this something, anything?"

"No I've made up my mind now please let me do this for you. It's the only thing I can do."

She looked into my eyes and I could tell she knew I was serious "Fen, can you wait here?"

I shot her a curious glance but nodded. I undid my embrace and let her stand on her shaking knees as she made her way back inside. She was gone, this was my chance to run away so mom wouldn't have to see me go. Unfortunately mom only took a shorter time that I expected and she returned with three objects in her arms.

"Mom, presents won't convince me to stay, besides I can't take any of it." I looked at the things in her arms I recognized some of it

She set them down one by one "I know I can't convince you to stay, and if I forced you to stay you would just sneak out. So I won't let you go unless I know I've done something to help you." I recognized some of the things she placed in front of me. First was my collar, next was my skateboard, and last was a box "I want you to have your collar back, just to remind you of me and help you sneak past some dog catchers. Your feet are still healing, so your skateboard could prove useful when it gets hard to walk. Last this is for you, since December is just around the corner, I wanted to give this to you as a Christmas present, but I guess you can have it now. I had a friend, fastest in the business, modify it so that it would fit you instead and don't worry I got it as a favor so it didn't cost me a dime. "

Without hesitation mom opened the box and pulled out a flowing black garb. My eyes widened, as I had come to realize that mom was giving me her coat. She opened the zipper and eased my arms into its sleeves. I expected it to be extremely loose and fall off but it fit perfectly on like it was made for me. Instantly I could feel warmth spreading through me as the coat shielded me from the cold.

"My brave, handsome, and caring dog." she trembled with every word she managed to draw out as she pressed her hand against the side of my face "I sometimes miss the dull eyed pup from the pound, but when I look at your eyes I can see that these eyes matured from those."

She paused to wipe the tears from her face "Fen I love you, I wish you could stay, I wish I could still be the one to take care of you. However not matter how hard I try to deny it, its just not possible anymore. Please be safe out there, and no matter what don't forget me. Okay?" She smiled saddened but I knew it was for my sake

I took in all the details of mom's face one more time, since it was probably the last time I'd see her. Her smile I swore I'd never forget, her long flowing hair that made her look like the purest of maidens, her shining emerald eyes that contrasted my crimson ones so perfectly it was a shame to separate the set. This was the woman I'd gladly give my life for, her kindness and warmth are better reserved for someone who can make her happier than I ever could.

"Mom you did the one thing nobody in this world has ever done for me. You cared about me, you gave me a chance, and even after a million concussions I'd never forget you or what you did for me. I love you too never forget that." Like howl I would forget about my own mother

She still held my shoulders tight afraid to let go, afraid she'd never see me again, afraid this would be the last time we held each other so close, afraid she'd forget about me her son "We do this together then, alright?"

No words were needed, as we nodded together in agreement. We both stood up together and faced our backs against each other. I faced the road and the journey ahead of me, while mom faced what was once our shared home. I was going to miss mom, but this was something that needed to be done.

"Goodbye Fen." She sighed making her way to the front door

"Goodbye mom." I brought up my hood and started walking after all I had a long journey ahead of me

End of Chapter 4


	5. Chapter 5 The World We Live In

Chapter 5  
The World We Live In

Darkness spread far and wide, and the only source of light was from a pure white circular tower I was standing on. An earthquake shook the tower and threw me onto my tail as I started sliding towards the edge. I tried to grab on to anything I could find, but there was nothing to hold on to. The only thing I could do was to brace myself for the endless fall.

I reached the edge of the tower and found it had a thin rim and desperately hung on despite the high chance of falling off. Gravity at this point was my enemy as I was now hanging by the thin rim staring into the eternal abyss. Four eyes opened and gazed at the eternal darkness until it found me. Out of nowhere rows of serrated teeth revealed themselves, even the smallest of the fangs inside the terrifying jaws could make my own accursed fangs look like baby teeth.

To it I was probably nothing but a speck, only to be blown away for entertainment. The four eyed beast shook the tower I held on to with enough force to make me wonder how I was still hanging on in the first place. Finally my grip failed me and I fell into the row of fangs screaming at the top of my lungs.

I shot up from my slumber as my body experienced its own personal earthquake while I gasped for air to renter my lungs. My first thoughts went to wondering if it was a dream or not. What I had just experienced felt like something more, it was too vivid, too clear, and I remembered each detail so perfectly it was almost as if I had lived through it. A breeze passed by causing me to reach for my blanket only to find it missing along with my bed, and the entirety of my room. The only things that greeted me was the sight of worn down sofas and other miscellaneous furniture accompanied by the sound of a running engine and the howling wind as it passed by

It came back slowly and painfully. Every word I had said to her, how I broke her heart, how it was for the best. I shook myself; even though its only been a few hours it felt like years since that moment on our front lawn I can't keep thinking about what I just did especially when it was for her own good.

"It's okay," I said to help myself calm down "it's fine."

At that moment I heard my own stomach growl at me desiring food. With that in mind I climbed up the stack of boxes and located a sunroof which I was able to climb through. Dawn's morning sun rose in the sky and blanketing me with warmth as I saw my destination's buildings come into view from where I was. I took a deep breath and exhaled as this would be my first day in the life of a stray.

"Welcome to San Francisco, Fen." I said aloud to myself

Living in the same area as mom wasn't going to be the best idea so I decided that I needed a change of scenery. Somewhere new, somewhere I could start again. It was early in the night when I had left mom's place so the first chance I got I stowed away on a delivery truck that was bound for San Francisco.

After a quick errand to retrieve my board I was back on the roof awaiting for my chance to get off the ride. As soon as the truck pulled into a warehouse I jumped off the roof and landed on my feet. Unfortunately, I had all but forgotten about my condition, messed up my landing, and crashed into a box of Styrofoam. Normally I could take jumps like that, heck I've taken on worse jumps but my feet were still recovering after all luckily everyone was too busy with the machinery to notice my slip up. Without making any more noise than i already have I made my way out the opening the truck came from.

I had a feeling that breakfast wasn't going to come easy in these parts, so I needed to be at the top of my game. Keeping that in mind I set down my skateboard and kicked off in the direction of the nearest possible food source.

Slowly but surely the city was beginning to wake up resident by resident, and that includes the ones who dump out the trash every morning. Luckily for me I found my first target which happened to be a worker of a fast food place slowly tapping his feet to the beat of his headphones.

I skid my skateboard to a halt, put up my hood and went to work "Excuse me sir, but do you have any food in there?"

My sudden appearance seemed to have thrown him off as he screamed bloody murder "Don't scare me like that. Hmm you aren't the regular, but oh well I'll never understand how you guys work. Here you go." Much to my surprise he handed me a box as if he knew I'd be here

"Thank you so much!" I accepted the package from him and set off to find a nice place to eat.

Settling down in an alley not to far off from where I met the fast food worker I opened the box to find an unfinished chicken dipped in gravy with a set of stale fries. In my position I had no right to complain, food was food, after all dogs were basically designed to eat anything anyway.

My meal was finished at a record pace, with nothing left but the bones of the chicken. I leaned back and set my sights on the sky above me, unable to help but think about what mom would be doing at this time. On normal days like today mom and I would set breakfast at the table, pancakes extra fluffy eggs extra white. I felt my mouth water at the thought especially since i could eat at least six of mom's pancakes. I shook my head as an unfamiliar scent caught my nose.

"Hey that looks like him over there." I looked up to see two large stray dogs pointing in my direction; maybe it would be best if I didn't stick around

After a quick check to see if I had everything with me, I bolted in the opposite direction of the dogs. One quick peek back revealed that not one of the two dogs gave chase to me. Still I quickened my pace, who knows what might have happened if I chose to stay. As I looked behind I failed to see what was in front of me and crashed into a hairy wall which threw me off my feet and onto my tail.

"Well boys it looks like we've got a little boy lost and alone." I looked up to see a bulky stray dog imposing his shadow on me without really trying

I tried to remain calm and properly asses the situation "I'm just passing through no harm done so, uh, how can I help you guys?" It was official I'm already dead someone plan my funeral; I'm thinking some blue roses on my grave would do nicely.

"You see boy, its unwritten rule that this is my gang's turf, and you just got food from one of our sources." After I was picked up and held to the wall I mentally slapped myself, I was so hungry and sleep deprived that I forgot to pay attention to scent markings, this was dog basics

I still had the advantage of them not knowing I was a dog so I had to play this off subtly "Look we're all dogs here so why don't we all calm down first then talk about the issue here." I paused for a moment only to realize I had given away my only advantage; how I was stupid enough to accomplish this I'll never know.

"What do you mean dogs?" The leader lifted my hood to reveal my canine nature "Looks like we have a pet in our midst, and a well taken care of one if that coat and collar says anything. What's the matter mommy and daddy's food too good for you now?" He threw me to the floor out of disgust

"I'm sorry I took some of your food, I was just passing through please I don't want any trouble."

"Too bad pet, you've found it."

The cracking sounds his knuckles made were signs that he was ready to deliver a punch. In order to avoid harm, I grabbed my board and used it as a shield to absorb the impact of the punch intended for me. The leader recoiled in pain causing the rest of his dog gang to surround me. Two came from behind and one attacked up front, leaving me virtually cornered. On instinct I dropped to the floor and allowed the dogs to collide above my head.

Before they could fall to the ground I rolled out of harms way and broke out into a sprint. Judging by some of the dogs' frames some of them could out run me and I wasn't about to take that chance. I threw my board ahead of me then jumped on and looked back to see a frustrated pack of dogs.

"Well? Go get him you idiots!" the leader yelled after punching one of his subordinates in the head

I exited the alley as my board ferried me to safety with my coat flapping in the winds. For now I was safe but I was now a wanted dog, I may have just arrived here but the smart thing to do would be to relocate into a new city. It's not like I had anything to leave behind here anyway.

As I gained speed, a thought had occurred to me. I was in San Francisco, a city built onto the side of a slope, and if this city was known for its slopes why was I riding my skateboard? A quick glance ahead showed me I was too late in this realization as my board approached a steep hill. Try as I might I had already gained too much momentum and it was too late to turn back now. However before I could unwillingly ride through the slopes of San Francisco one of the dog gang members latched onto my coat and was now a passenger on for the ride.

"Boss I got the dog!" Hey foolishly yelled out unaware of the fact that we were just on the brink of the slope

I shot him a crazed look as my board began its decent and yelled at the top of my lungs "Hey let go! This thing's important to me!"

"Not gonna happen, the boss wants you so he's going to get you." He replied continuing to be blissfully unaware of our gaining speed; all it took to change his perspective was a look ahead to see a steep slope that lead to a busy street lined with people "STOP THE FREAKING BOARD YOU IDIOT!"

I started to panic as my board began to gain speed "I DON'T KNOW HOW!"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW HOW!?"

"I JUST DON'T KNOW ALRIGHT GET OFF MY CASE!"

"HEEEEELLLLLP!"

The sheer speed that I was traveling caused my eyes to water. I was traveling too fast to turn or stop properly and to make things worse I was headed for a busy street of people. There was no way to avoid them, I had to go through the busy crowd whether they liked it or not.

"LOOK OUT! GET OUT OF THE WAY!" I yelled as a warning to the ones ahead of me

They were smart enough to move out of the way, but unfortunately for us they did nothing more. Even when the gang of dogs passed through them they still continued to go about their business as if nothing was wrong. At times like this I wondered how the world continued to function when this is what they did in times of emergency.

There was no time to think about that as of now as the road ahead met with the river under the golden state bridge. I wasn't experienced enough to stop at this speed so I have two options presented to me. One I could accept my fate and fall into the river, but I never really learned how to swim. Two I could try to stop even with my inexperience, but if I failed I could sustain injuries that I had no means of treating.

Against my better judgment I attempted to stop my board by shifting my weight around to make the board turn slightly to the side and skid. Everything was turning out just as planed, I was slowing down and I was regaining control over my board. When I came to a complete stop I breathed a sigh of relief, I was lucky enough to escape that unharmed. Even the dog behind me was fine, tired and panting like there was no tomorrow sure, but still fine.

"Quick he came to a stop, get him!" the leader yelled, I had completely forgotten about the rest of them; nuts why can't I catch a break!?

Once more I kicked off to send my board on its way, but the tires were damaged due to my stunt and my board more of a hindrance now. There was no time to complain the gang was hot on my trail, I picked up the board and ran into a nearby alley. If I couldn't lose them with my board I needed to be a little more creative. They may have the numbers and home-court advantage but I could still blend it with a crowd if I could find one thick enough.

They alleys were shady, maze like, and the smell of garbage polluted the air. If I wasn't careful I could end up in a dead end, and have to backtrack which could lead to bumping into one of the gang members. Maybe I didn't think this through enough, I wasn't as well versed with this town's ins and outs as the other dogs so this could be a little problem.

"I think I spotted him over in this alley. Come on he's headed towards a dead end we've got him now." Scratch that I definitely made a mistake, what in the world was I thinking?

I was stuck; my feet were already starting to kill me and I didn't know how much longer I could remain standing much less run. If they caught up with me who knows what they'll do. Not adding to the pressure at all was three alleyways all going in different directions. I had to choose but I wasn't sure which one would be my road to salvation.

"Over here." A deep and masculine voice called out from the direction of a nearby door decorated in graffiti to look like a mural of a wolf howling at the moon with swords pointed at the wolf

I hesitated at first "Who's there? Come out so I can see you." a voice through a door didn't exactly sound trust worthy

"I'm afraid I have no time to explain to you who I am, or what I want. Actually what am I saying, I have all the time in the world. You however do not." I rolled my eyes, I just 'met' the voice and already I didn't like him "We may have just met but think about this. You have the group of dogs behind you with guaranteed hostility and you have me the one who extended his hand to assist you. Now ask yourself which is the lesser of two evils?"

I blinked in surprise "How did you know about them?"

"Again you're running out of time. Its no skin off my bones if you decide to wait a little but if you want to avoid a few cuts and bruises come inside and you'll get out of this experience." I was not particularly ready to trust the voice but what choice did I have?

I took a step forward but I felt my coat hold me back, a quick turn around showed me the leader had caught up to me with his gang in tow "Where do you think you're going? We still haven't settled our differences yet."

There was no time to react, the boss punched me in the face and sent me tumbling into a sack of garbage next to a worn out dresser with the mirror still intact. Using the dresser I propped myself up only to see a black eye already forming on my right eye.

"Aw does the poor pet have an ouchy?" The gang leader held my board in his hands then snapped it in two "now there's no more running away."

I watched in abject horror as the pieces of my skateboard hit the ground and scattered. One of mom's last gifts to me broken and in pieces, and all I heard was laughter directed at me. There was no way I could take them all on, I was all alone. While I was stunned with fear the boss grabbed my by the collar and undid it after taking a quick look at it.

"Fenrir Rodriguez?" he laughed a little bit then threw it at the floor and stepped on it, no doubt scratching the name plate "Say good night Fenrir." That's the second gift he ruined

I felt my blood begin to boil as his foot remained on my collar. I followed the instincts inside of me and with one swift motion I kicked his stomach hard enough to take away his breath and bring him to his knees. Instantly I felt the waves of pain come off from my foot but I had to grit my teeth and bare through it. Once I was dropped and the first thing I did was to push the boss off my collar and grab it. With my collar in my hands once more I made a dart towards the door and stepped inside as I redid my collar.

"Ah so you've come at last." The voice said to me with a smug tone "Right this way Fenrir."

End of Chapter 5


	6. Chapter 6 Lies Told to One's Self

Chapter 6  
Lies Told to One's Self

Again I found myself surrounded by darkness, only this time I wasn't sure if it was because I had my eyes shut in fear, frustration, and anger or because I was covered in it for real. I knew one thing though; I had to keep running to get away. Whether it was from the dog gang or the world that just plain hated me I wasn't sure either.

Something was wrong; I should have hit a dead end a long while ago. I came to a halt and inspected my surroundings there was no light whatsoever. How could that be the sun just rose, and I was pretty sure I saw a window or two before I entered.

"Fenrir so glad you could make it." There it was again, that deep annoying voice that just popped out of nowhere

I grunted and tried to search for the voice's source "Where exactly is here anyway?"

"Calm down Fenrir, I just want to talk. Like you I want answers as well" I continued to search but I couldn't even hear where his voice came from or where his scent placed him "After all I did save you from those gang members. The least you could do is answer the few questions I have."

I had to admit he had a point and figured nothing harmful could come from it "Fine what do you want, but I'll tell you now I don't know much you're better off asking someone else."

"Oh no Fenrir I don't want to ask someone else, I want to ask you. Only you can answer the questions I have."

"Well fine what are they?"

"Why are you out here all alone?" That one question caught me off guard the voice didn't strike me as the concerned type "You have a collar, that means that you specifically have an owner, so where is that owner?"

"I- I don't want to talk about it." memories of last night already resurfacing

The voice ignored my previous statement and continued "Did you run away? Was this of your own choice or did your owner kick you out?"

"No she would never kick me out." I struggled to keep up with his barrage of questions; why was this man so interested in me?

"why did you break her heart?"

At that question everything in my mind ceased working and burned with anger "What!? WHY SHOULD I ANSWER THAT QUESTION!?"

He continued as if he didn't hear my previous statement "Do you regret what you did? Do you want to go home?"

"SHUT UP! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANYMORE OF YOUR QUESTIONS!"

"Was this your choice? Did you do this of your own free will?"

"IT'S NOT YOUR BUSINESS TO KNOW!

"ANSWER ME!" The voice seemed to have lost his patience and so have I

If he wants answers then he'll get what he wants "I'm alone because I chose to be; I don't need anyone anyway! All my life being attached to anyone has only brought me more grief and pain so I choose to be alone." I already felt the tears matting the fur on my face "I used to have an owner but I was nothing other than a burden to her. She can live an easier life without me in it. I love her, I care for her, and I want mom to be happy, even if it means I won't be there to see it. SO SHE DOESN'T NEED ME!"

The dark space went silent and the only thing I could hear was my own sobs. I don't know why I had opened up to a strange voice I barely even knew, but all the emotions I had to hide and bury deep down couldn't remain hidden any longer. No matter how much I try to hide them no matter how much I tell myself I'm okay, the truth is I'm really not.

"I thank you for your time Fenrir," The voice said, and even though I couldn't see it I could feel that he was smiling at me "now I must be going."

Wait he's going? "Hey why did you bring me here!?" I ran off towards where I thought the owner of the voice would be.

When I took the first step light burst forth from where my foot met solid ground. From where I had stepped the light grew and expanded till it filled out a circular shape. The moment my eyes readjusted to the light I was greeted by a familiar sight.

Pure darkness surrounding me as it expanded for eternity with the only light source coming from the circular tower beneath me. Only this time the light not only took the shade of pure white, it took on many different colors. Blue and silver lined the rims while gold stemmed from the center; I took a step back and saw it form a stain glass like image with a depiction of me floating as if I was in an endless dream. Where in the world was I, and how did I even end up here from San Francisco?

This was the scene from my dream; even with the stain glass that depicted me I still knew this was the place. The only thing missing now was the beast with yellow eyes. I had to get out of here before that beast shows itself; if I bumped into it here I wouldn't survive. Before was a dream, I could wake up from dreams, as far as I could tell I was wide awake.

Before I could take anther step something caught my ear and forced me to stay still "I want to go home."

I turned around and saw a copy of myself "I want to see her again." he cried covering his eyes

"I miss her, I want to see her again." Another copy of me appeared crying and still covering his eyes

The process repeated itself over and over until I was surrounded by multiple copies of myself all repeating the same phrases like some sort of mantra.

"I want to go home."

"I want to see her again."

"I miss her."

"I broke her heart."

"I'm sorry."

The sound of my own voice clogged my ears overwhelming my sense of hearing. It was too much noise, I couldn't think clearly as I dropped to my knees clutching my ears desperately trying to nab a moment of silence.

Breaking the pattern I felt a hand on my shoulder causing me to look at one clone who wasn't crying but looked sad all the same "Let's go home. Please?" he held out his hand to me to help me up

"I'm sorry," I stood up on my own "you know why we can't go home."

His sadness instantly turned to anger "Traitor!" he shouted, his eyes turning soulless yellow "Traitor!" the other clones joined in their eyes taking on the same hue "Traitor! Traitor!"

Before anything else could happen all the clones' bodies shattered like glass and all gathered into one being away from the circle of light. After a while I saw it; two sets of glowing yellow eyes piercing the darkness to see me. Panic surged through my body; I was going to die here if I did nothing.

The shadowy figure charged after me and entered the range of light. It was exactly like my dream had depicted it except with even more detail. Large rows of serrated teeth that dwarfed my own accursed fangs, and so ridiculously large that it struggled to even hang on to the tower. The light exposed its lupine nature as well as a gaping hole where it's chest should have been.

There was nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide as the creature raised it's right hand to strike at me. I crossed my arms, braced for impact and awaited my death. In less than a moment I was swept up and tossed to the ceiling. Rather than actually hit the ceiling I kept going higher and higher, then gravity went to work sending me straight back down. In less than ten seconds I impacted the floor unceremoniously somehow managing to survive the sheer impact of the fall.

It might not have been the smartest thing to do, but I found myself standing up again despite the pain that flowed through my body. I have heard from countless places that before you die you will see a flash back of your entire life, and all I saw was loneliness and pain except for that entire year I spent with mom.

There might not be anyone to hear me, but I think I needed to hear myself say it aloud "This will not be the place I die. Not after the live I've lived through. There's only been one year where I've been happy. I will survive this and I will make my life worth living again!"

The shadow wolf raised its hand once more and I despite how foolish it might have seemed I charged straight for it.

As we drew closer and closer my heartbeat began to accelerate as I approached my doom. I closed my eyes and waited for the impact, an impact that never came. Once my eyes were open I found the shadow wolf clutching its hands and in my hand a blade in the shape of a black colored key. It had a long reach and three pointed edges that shot from its blade served as the key's teeth, even the handle held some sharp edges that seemed to complete the look.

Where did this thing come from? I tried to survey the area but nothing of interest was around except for the four books orbiting me. As I tried to reach out to grab one of the books the wolf had recovered and howled its challenge.

I barred my accursed fangs and cried out "You want me? Here I am!" I took an offensive stance and prepared myself mentally for battle

End of Chapter 6


	7. Chapter 7 Spell Master

Chapter 7  
Spell Master

After hearing my battle cry the wolf enveloped itself in a sphere of darkness and plummeted toward me. I got out of the way quickly and had my blade at the ready in case it tried anything.

Before I could properly perfumey poultine what happened a deep snarl escaped the dark sphere. The shadows faded away to show that the wolf had shrunken itself, but something was wrong, it was standing on four legs instead of two. The wolf charged at me and I had to use my blade to keep it at bay. While it may overpower me in terms of strength I still had a second arm and two legs at my disposal. I kicked off the shadow wolf, ignoring the pain my foot gave off, and brought my blade down on its head, and followed up with a horizontal slash to the side of its face. Injured, the wolf backed off and began to tread carefully around me. Now that we both knew what the other was capable of we were both reluctant to engage combat once more.

I had no idea I knew how to do any of these combat tricks but I could chalk it up to adrenaline, and instinct balancing each other out. Still there was a limit to what instinct and adrenaline can do so I had to end this as quickly as I could.

Steeling my courage I gripped my blade tight and made the charge forward. The shadow wolf dodged my blows by jumping up and attempted to pin me to the floor as it came back down. Unfortunately for the shadow wolf that action left its underbelly open for my blade to strike. I heaved upward and hoped for the best. The vibrations surging through my blade told me I had hit my mark, but there was more.

Due to the impact my blade was in pieces that scattered throughout the stain glass floor. Without my blade I backed off and tried to keep my distance as I was now unarmed. All that was left of my only means of defense was the handle of the blade which was completely useless in this situation. Despite my new status of being unarmed the beast kept its distance.

I studied my surroundings and saw the fragments of my blade swirling around the black book that orbited me. The black book opened and turned to several pages quickly displaying the contents of each page. Even though the pages turned at a blinding speed I saw each and every one of the titles, Fire, Aero, Thunder, and Blizzard.

Once the book shut itself back into its closed position I saw the fragments switch over to swirling around me. My heart began to pick up its pace as I felt energy being pumped into my system.

The beast looked desperate and made a charge for me. On instinct I grabbed the black book and flipped to my desired page while holding my hand outstretched. I stopped on the page that was marked thunder and felt the pulse of energy grow stronger. As if I commanded it lightning shot from my hand and struck the beast down.

The blast gave me an opening, as a result I found myself throwing one spell after another. I started off and blasted it with fire, and then followed it up with shooting crystal shards with blizzard, and finished with aero that made a hurrican form around me and fling the beast away. As I raised my palm to cast thunder once more the beast rolled out of the way and began jumping around the stain glass floor.

Try as I might I tried to keep my spells focused on it, but every time it dodged out of the way causing me to miss my mark. When I saw it settle down from all the jumping I readied to cast blizzard, but before I could the black book shut itself as my blade reappeared before me. Ignoring my blade I held my palm out once more and attempted to cast thunder, but my spells weren't working.

The beast saw this as an opening and charged at me with its fangs bared. I was drained down to my limit from casting all those spells simultaneously, and the energy I had felt from the black book was now gone. Knowing that I was done for I overlooked the pain and grabbed the blade to assume a fighting stance. The shadow wolf drew closer and closer but my resolve did not falter.

"I am going to survive, and I will make my life worth living from this point on." I told myself once more for a morale boost

All of time seemed to slow down as the beast approached striking range. My swift motion and the shadow wolf's were rendered in slow motion as my blade readied to meet its claws. The final blow was struck but our bodies still had to register the damage dealt to each of us.

Seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours. Finally the monster's strength failed it as it collapsed to the stain glass floor. I turned to face my opponent victoriously with a weary smile etched onto my face.

End of Chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8 Slumber

Chapter 8  
Slumber

I stood proudly over the shadow wolf and marveled at my work. With my blade and my black book in hand I defeated the beast that plagued my nightmares. The only problem now was getting out of this strange place.

Aside from the floor and me, the only other thing left of interest in this place was this shadow wolf. There was no way out, which confused me as to how I got inside in the first place.

"Your heart is strong Fenrir. I am impressed, although I was not expecting a keyblade to manifest, in hind sight i should've expected it. Truly you have exceeded all of my expectations bravo Fenrir bravo." It was the voice spewing nonsense again.

I had my blade at the ready. "You again. Are you the one doing this? Tell me where I am and how I get out." I scanned the everlasting darkness and found no trace for the voice's origin. It only seemed to echo from all sides

"Oh no Fenrir you are too valuable to me now that you have shown me exactly how strong your heart is." I couldn't make sense of what he was saying. Keyblade? Heart? There's something he isn't telling me.

"Let me out!" I demanded already fed up with his mysteriousness "What could you possibly want with me?"

"Now that would be telling." I shook; the voice was right behind me.

With a vice like grip on my blade I swung it horizontally hoping to catch him with the blade's range. The figure that owned the voice was now gone, and nowhere to be seen.

How could he just appear then disappear? "Up here Fenrir."

Following his voice I saw him mid air; he was wearing the exact same coat I was wearing with the hood up so I couldn't see his face. He also had it zipped up so I couldn't see anything other than the cloak and his hands. I made a mental note; they were covered in red fur.

"Now, now Fenrir," he scolded with a pointed finger raised "be a good dog and just accept what I have planned out for you. Trust me your life would be much easier if you do." I replied with my blade at the ready and a snarl from my muzzle

Who was I kidding? After that last battle I was in no condition to fight. My breaths were shaky at best, my legs were near the point of exhaustion and the pain coming from my feet was almost unbearable but I had to make him think I could still take him on. I had to make him think that if I could beat that shadow wolf, then he had no chance against me.

To my deadly serious face he only laughed "Alright that's fine too. I admire your courage Fenrir; your owner was right to name you after the savage demon wolf. I see the ferocity in your eyes," he stopped laughing and adopted a fatal tone "but that is easily extinguished."

The hooded figure lowered himself to the shadow wolf that I had just defeated and touched its forehead. He stood up, snapped his fingers then the wolf had gotten up like it had taken no damage from our previous battle against one another. I watched with eyes widened in horror; I was going to fight the wolf again and the hooded figure together in my completely exhausted state.

I needed another way out, a back door solution some way to defeat both of them without fighting them. The only problem was that there was nothing here that would serve that purpose; I had no choice but to prepare myself for a second round. Unfortunately my body couldn't take much more; I was pushing it already by just holding my blade up.

When my arm gave out and dropped my blade the figure laughed once more "There you see Fenrir. Even your body betrays you. Surrender your heart to me and this will be less painful."

As I tried to reach for my blade a noticed something; a small indent in the center of the stain glass floor. Leaning in a bit closer I noticed that it was in the shape of a keyhole. That hooded figure said that my weapon was called a keyblade. If my hunch was right I would survive this but if I was wrong I was dead. What choice do I have? I almost giggled it was funny how I keep asking myself that question.

I grabbed my blade once more and raised it up high then prayed to what ever forces that it would work. The figure noticed my actions and raced together with the wolf to strike me down.

"Wait don't do it!" he yelled as he made a mad dash towards me

However my blade reached the keyhole first and when I twisted my keyblade a mini quake shook the tower. Thanks to my keyblade I had something to hang on to, but the hooded figure and the wolf were helplessly thrown around as they still tried to reach me.

Out of the corner of my eyes I saw the stain glass floors fold up and retract towards the center. After seeing this, the shadow wolf and the hooded figure pushed all their efforts to reaching the center. However it was quick enough to over take both of them, dropping the two carelessly into the pit inside the tower.

Once both were inside I twisted the keyblade back and immediately the stain glass floor was putting itself back into its place. Now that both threats were gone I could no longer hold up my facade and collapsed with raspy breaths for air. There was a strong surging pain coming from my chest that overshadowed the pain that had occurred else where on my body.

Before long the entire area had gone from shrouded by an eternity of darkness to a being showered with endless light. Was I dying? Well at least I went out fighting. If this was going to be the end I could at least pass on knowing that I went down with a fight instead of accepting it till the very end.

"You idiot." What? The voice, he hasn't left yet? "Do you even realize what you've done? This will set me back, but a heart like yours; I still need it. Though in hindsight you may have actually done me a favor. Its hard to move around when you've got so many eyes in one place. So I will wait for the day when you wake up."

End of Chapter 8


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